We’ve all felt it before: that gut-wrenching moment when you realise you can’t find your keys or wallet. A frantic pat-down of your pockets, a hasty rummage through your bag, and then, resignation. You’ve left it somewhere. Your wallet, with all your cards, identifying information, and maybe even a personal picture or two. Who knows where it could be?
A finder device, that’s who. These use clever techniques to keep track of whatever you attach them to, such as by using Bluetooth tracking to remember its last known GPS location. The Tile Mate is one such device, and it’s crammed full of helpful functionality, especially if you sign up for its $3 per month subscription service. Using a Tile Mate means no more sudden post-pocket-pat-down dread. Instead, you can be proactive and find whatever it is you’ve lost.
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What is it?
It’s a small, square device that can attach to a keyring. This device then establishes a connection to your phone via Bluetooth, allowing it to keep note of when and where the device went out of range. This means that, for whatever you attach it to, if you lose it you’ll always know where it was when it was in a 200ft range of your phone. And, when you get within range of its last known location, you can ring the tile to hear where it might be. You can also do the same in reverse if you lose your phone nearby, and double-press the Tile button to make your phone ring.
Why should you buy it?
This is a device best suited to those that are worried about misplacing important items like a set of keys or a wallet. It might not happen often, but when you do lose something like that, it can be terrifying. If you have a Tile Mate attached to your device, you don’t have to worry so much about forgetting your wallet at the café or dropping your keys in the parking lot. If you get home and realise the item isn’t with you, simply open your phone to see where it was last in range, go back there, and ring it with a double-press of your Tile Mate. Or, if you’re lucky, someone else with a Tile will have walked in range, and the app will keep you updated with where your own Tile is based on this.
What options do you have?
There are a few different Tile finder devices available to buy, but the Mate or the Pro version should suit most use cases. Also note that, while these devices’ batteries are supposed to last for one year, many users report them dying before then, and the device won’t tell you when the battery’s ran out. For this reason, we recommend you swap out the battery every six months or so, rather than only once a year.
The Tile Mate is the standard model, available only in white and with a range of up to 200ft. It’s water resistant and its dimensions are 35mm by 35mm by 6.2mm. This device is suitable for most use cases.
The Tile Pro is similar to the Tile Mate, but is available in black as well as white, and has a range of up to 400ft. It is also water resistant like the Mate, but it rings out louder, and is slightly bigger at 42mm by 42mm by 6.5mm. This device is better suited to those that require the extra 200ft of tracking range.